Automated & Manual Testing + AI – A Holistic Approach to Accessibility | Abhay Kapur

In the quest for truly inclusive digital experiences, accessibility testing can’t be an afterthought. This session explores a holistic approach that combines the strengths of automated testing, manual evaluation, and emerging AI technologies to build websites and applications that truly work for all users.

We will dive into how automated tools can detect common issues, how manual testing uncovers the real-world challenges users face, and how AI can help increase efficiency by detecting context and patterns.

Whether you’re a developer, tester, designer, or product owner, this session will equip you with practical insights to create more inclusive digital products – because accessibility isn’t just a legal requirement, it’s our shared responsibility.

Accessible Watch Experience: How WDR is Using AI to Shape the Future of Media for People With Hearing Disabilities | Christian Klöckner, Hannes Hölzl

How can artificial intelligence (AI) improve the accessibility of media content and promote participation for people with hearing impairments? Moving image content poses a major challenge, as subtitles often have to be created by speaking – especially for live formats, this is time-consuming and often inadequate. Can AI offer an efficient and user-friendly solution to optimize this process? WDR investigated these questions as part of the development of AI-based subtitling for the German television program WDR Lokalzeit. In order to test both the technological and functional aspects, the prototype underwent user testing. The UX/UI team at Appmatics planned and managed this accessibility test. The aim of the exploratory approach was to investigate how people with different degrees of hearing impairment perceive and evaluate the AI-generated subtitles. Project manager Hannes shares insights from the testing process and shows how AI and user-centred design interact in the testing process. He also gives an outlook on the future of accessible, AI-supported media offerings and their potential for widespread use in digital media.

Accessibility Between Human Feedback and AI Feedback: User-Centered Design For Everyone | Laura Marwede

Artificial Intelligence (AI) offers significant potential for improving accessibility by automating processes such as user feedback and language simplification. However, our real-world case studies reveal that relying only on AI-generated solutions often falls short, particularly when addressing nuanced challenges like simplified language and accessible design for diverse user groups. This talk explores the intersection of AI and human feedback in UX design, highlighting the essential role of direct input from affected individuals to complement AI-driven approaches. Through practical examples, we will demonstrate how AI tools can enhance efficiency while maintaining the critical need for empathetic, user-centred validation. By integrating AI capabilities with participatory design practices, we can create more inclusive, effective solutions. Attendees will gain insights into best practices for leveraging AI without compromising the human element, fostering genuinely accessible digital experiences. This session advocates for a balanced approach: combining AI efficiency with the irreplaceable depth of human feedback of those who are in need of accessible software, to ensure technology serves all users equitably.

Digital Accessibility: From Hidden Pitfalls to Lasting Solutions | Nina Jameson

Truly accessible experiences aren’t born from simply checking off boxes — they blossom when every step is crafted with inclusivity at its core. In this session, we’ll shine a light on both everyday and subtle barriers that can quietly hinder users, helping you spot and address them before they become showstoppers. Next, you’ll discover how semantic HTML, a thoughtful approach to ARIA, and smart design principles can work together to build robust, user-friendly components. Finally, we’ll explore the possibilities (and limitations) of automated and manual testing, ensuring accessibility remains a guiding force throughout your development process. Come away with practical methods to unite your team around shared standards and create a product that truly includes and inspires every user.

Accessible Marketing as a Strategic Framework | Norman Bielig

Accessible marketing can do more than facilitate people’s access to information, communication and participation. For brands, it can serve as a strategic framework for making clearer decisions and escaping from self-made communicative rabbit holes. Dealing with accessibility always creates an awareness of exclusivity and inclusivity – and thus the prerequisite for strategic decisions with a clear business impact.

Approach With Care – Making Digital Accessibility Feel Natural | Daniel Yuschick

Our lives are increasingly lived online. Think about it — we work, study and socialize online. We talk with our therapists and consult with doctors online. We bank, shop and pay taxes online. Digital accessibility has never been more important than it is right now. Despite this, making our work accessible can feel like an overwhelming mystery.

This talk will teach us how to greatly impact the accessibility of our work with various approaches to our design and development tasks. We will identify many common UI (User Interface) patterns, and learn how to approach them in order for assistive technologies, such as screen readers, to understand and communicate them clearly. We will highlight and reiterate how accessible design is good design and benefits everybody. All of this without looking at a single line of code.

The goal of this talk is to reframe how we think about and start our design and development work to make accessibility feel like a natural part of our workflow. We are not building software for users, but for people — and all people deserve empathy from the digital products that make up their very real lives.